Skywatch Friday

A perfect {blue} day.

See more skies from around the world here.

It's Monday. What Are You Reading?

I am still plodding on with The Mystery Of Mercy Close by Marian Keyes - I will finish it but it seems to be taking some time.

My problem is that id I'm not particularly enjoying a book then I will look at my "to be read" pile and spot something else I want to read more. After renewing my library books online I noticed that My Animals And Other Family by Clare Balding is due back fairly soon so I have started that one.

Clare Balding has been on our screens for ages - mainly as a horse racing commentator but more recently she was one of the main presenters for the London 2012 Olympics and has become something of a national treasure.  For me her best moment was interviewing Clad Le Clos's Dad Brad after Chad won the 200m butterfly beating Michael Phelps:

'I had spent most of my childhood thinking I was a dog, and suspect I had aged in dog years. By the time I was ten I had discovered the pain of unbearable loss. I had felt joy and jealousy. Most important of all, I knew how to love and how to let myself be loved. All these things I learnt through animals. Horses and dogs were my family and my friends. This is their story as much as it is mine'


Clare Balding grew up in a rather unusual household. Her father a champion trainer, she shared her life with more than 100 thoroughbred racehorses, mares, foals and ponies, as well as an ever-present pack of boxers and lurchers. As a toddler she would happily ride the legendary Mill Reef and take breakfast with the Queen.

She and her younger brother came very low down the pecking order. Left to their own devices, they had to learn life's toughest lessons through the animals, and through their adventures in the stables and the idyllic Hampshire Downs. From the protective Candy to the pot-bellied Valkyrie and the frisky Hattie, each horse and each dog had their own character and their own special part to play.

The running family joke was that "women ain't people". Clare has to prove them wrong, to make her voice heard - but first she had to make sure she had something to say.

I cannot link to Shelia's blog today as I have now tried twice and it keeps freezing my PC - so I won't put a link up just yet.

Big 365+1 Catch Up

I don't think I have ever been so far behind with this - time just seems to be getting away with me at the moment.

326 : Crowd : I could have taken a photo of a crowd of people on our local beach - but we walked quite a way and found ourselves all alone with the beach to ourselves - so here is a crowd of pebbles taken from a low perspective.

327 : Paint : We have been in this house almost 4 years now and the paintwork no longer looks pristine (especially after I dropped something quite solid down the stairs resulting in a dent in the wall - oops. So we are looking at paint charts and trying to make up our minds.

328 : Gloomy : The state of the High Street in Elgin. This is JJB Sports which is closing down and having a clearance sales. Not that I shall miss this particular shop as I rarely went in it - it is being replaced with another sports shop!! Too many charity shops and 99p shops for my liking which means you have to go further afield if you want something in particular.

329 : Sad : A lovely walk along Lossiemouth West beach late yesterday afternoon. Sad to see the light house which has been recently decommissioned. Hope they do something constructive with it.

330 : Forgotten : If it isn't in my phone then I stand no change of remembering anything. So I know that tomorrow Sam has his biology prelim - fingers crossed he does well.

Skywatch Friday

This was the early morning sky yesterday taken from my back garden - it was an amazing shade of pink which these photos don't really give justice to.

See more skies from around the world here.

325/365+1 : Bridge

I haven't been anywhere near a bridge today (non that would be worth photographing anyway) but here is a bridge from our walk on Sunday afternoon. The west beach at Lossiemouth is reached by a wooden pedestrian bridge which is over 100 years old. And somewhere underneath that bridge is the lens cap from my camera which I dropped on a previous walk - I watched it bounce but before I could get it it vanished between the wooden slats into the water below!!

324/365+1 : Free Choice

This is my current knitting project - a bobbily scarf in my favourite colour - purple. Shame some little bugger saw fit to fiddle with it today while I was at work and take it off the pins. All attempts to rescue the stitches were in vain and I have unravelled the lot and started again. It will keep me quiet in front of the telly tonight.

It's Monday.What Are You Reading?

I was reading The Mystery Of Mercy Close by Marian Keyes and quite enjoying it - till I got a phone call from my local library to say a book that I had requested was in.

Helen Walsh doesn't believe in fear - it's just a thing invented by men to get all the money and good jobs - and yet she's sinking. Her work as a Private Investigator has dried up, her flat has been repossessed and now some old demons have resurfaced.

Not least in the form of her charming but dodgy ex-boyfriend Jay Parker, who shows up with a missing persons case. Money is tight and Jay is awash with cash, so Helen is forced to take on the task of finding Wayne Diffney, the 'Wacky One' from boyband Laddz.

Things ended messily with Jay. And she's never going back there. Besides she has a new boyfriend now, the very sexy detective Artie Devlin and it's all going well. But the reappearance of Jay is stirring up all kinds of stuff she thought she'd left behind.

Playing by her own rules, Helen is drawn into a dark and glamorous world, where her worst enemy is her own head and where increasingly the only person she feels connected to is Wayne, a man she's never even met.

 Once I had picked it up I just had to start reading it straight away without finishing my current book. Impatient is my middle name!!

It is Camp David by the comedian David Walliams. I used to love Little Britain and thought he was a great judge on Britains Got Talent - just looking at him makes me smile. I am only a few chapters in and already you can see why his on screen persona is thee way it is. And how come of his iconic characters came into being. Really enjoying it.

Famous comedian, funniest judge on Britain's Got Talent, irresistible ladykiller and high-achieving sportsman, David Walliams is a man of many talents. Launched to fame with the record-breaking Little Britain, his characters - Lou, Florence, Emily, amongst others - became embedded in our shared popular culture. You couldn't enter a playground for a long while without hearing "eh, eh, eh" or "computer says no".

Yet Walliams is a mystery. Often described as a bundle of contradictions, he is disarming and enigmatic, playing up his campness one minute and hinting about his depression the next.

To read Camp David is to be truly shocked, as well as tickled pink, as David Walliams bares his soul like never before and reveals a fascinating and complex mind. This searingly honest autobiography is a true roller-coaster ride of emotions, as this nation's sweetheart unlocks closely guarded secrets that until now have remained hidden in his past.


David Walliams is an actor, writer, active fundraiser and - above all - he's a world class comedian who knows how to make us laugh. He performed in and co-wrote the phenomenally successful Little Britainand Come Fly with Me with Matt Lucas, and recently appeared as a popular judge alongside Simon Cowell on Britain's Got Talent. He has performed many feats of endurance for charity, and won over the entire country when he swam the Thames for Sports Relief. His bestselling children's books include Mr Stink, Gangsta Granny, Billionaire Boy, Boy in the Dress and Ratburger.

Pop over to The Book Journey and see what everyone else is reading today.

323/365+1 : Playful

A dog we met on our walk along the beach this afternoon having great fun rnning in and out of the sea with his ball.

322/365+1 : Books

An easy one for me today. But then what books to take a photo of? I have two large bookcases - full. A small book case - full. Then there is a pile of library books by my bed and another pile by the bookcase. And this pile of mainly cookery books on the coffee table. So many books - so little time!

321/365 : Fence

I know this isn't strictly a fence but it is similar. It it part of a groyne at Lossiemouth beach and I have lost count of the number of times I have photographed it - I seem to take a picture everytime I go.

Skywatch Friday

Sunset over Lossiemouth west beach.

See more skies from around the world here.

320/365+1 : Uplifting

I have fine hair so I need all the help I can get #uplifting!!

319/365+1 : Nostalgia

Had to have a think about this one.

 The term nostalgia describes a sentimental longing for the past, typically for a period or place with happy personal associations.

I found this old photo stored on my PC - it reared its head on Facebook several years ago and brings back so many memories. I have to admit that I loved school once I got into the 5th and 6th years and looking back you realise how easy you had it then. I tell my boys that their schooldays are the happiest days of their lives - but they don't agree. No responsibilities or worries - just a few exams to sit? I would love to go back to then and knowing what I know now maybe I would work just that bit harder!!

This photo makes me smile :)

The Coca Cola truck started it's journey around the country today starting right here in Elgin. People were in the car park at 8am this morning to see it! Personally seeing it from the comfort of my car as I drove over the bridge was enough for me (I think I am in a minority of one for not actually liking the advert that is re run year after year) - the boys went to see it at lunchtime from school but only because they were handing out tins of the stuff. I have pinched this photo from a friends Facebook page.

318/365+1 : Thoughtful

Sam got his timetable for his prelims which start at the end of the month. Much thought and revision required but fingers crossed he will do OK in them. He is in credit classes for almost every subject and so far he seems to be doing plenty of studying - long may it last.

317/365+1 : Refreshing

This is a trip down memory lane for me - Cream Soda - a taste of my childhood and very refreshing.

I have my doubts that it will taste anything like the original Corona version in a glass bottle that was bought from the local "offy" - which you used to return so you could get a few pence back per bottle.. Who remembers the advert and the catchphrase???

It's Monday. What Are You Reading?

A bit of a change this week as I am reading an autobiography. I don't read many - only those people who I like - usually after seeing them on TV and then thinking I would like to know more about them.

Choir by Gareth Malone I ordered from my local library as I quite enjoyed the military wives choir programme he did (I only watched it because it was set at RMB Chivenor where we lived for 6 yeasr - and we spent the series looking out for places we recognised!)  More recently he has done Sing While You Work which I enjoyed more - he created 4 workplace choirs across the country who then went head to head against each other.

Pop over to The Book Journey to see what everyone else is reading today.

The hugely popular Gareth Malone recounts the heart-warming stories and transformations behind the award-winning BBC2 series The Choir For the first time, Gareth reveals everything he has learned from working with so many groups of memorable people, including the record-breaking Military Wives and latest series of The Choir being shown this Autumn. Gareth was an unknown Choirmaster when he arrived on British TV screens five years ago. Boyish, irrepressible and determined, Gareth took on a collection of kids from the most unlikely comprehensive and turned them into a talented performing choir. This was the beginning of a national love affair with a bow-tied and undeniably charming young man, and it was also the start of a national rediscovery of the joy to be found in choirs. Since then, each series of The Choir has gone on to even more demanding challenges, taking young offenders to Glyndebourne, regenerating disparate and far from affluent communities, and finally in an extraordinarily emotional journey, Gareth took a group of women whose partners were serving in Afghanistan to a Christmas Number One. This Autumn, in a new four-part series, The Choir: Sing While you Work, Gareth will be challenging four new Choirs to compete against each other. This is his memoir of a period in which he transformed the lives of thousands but also gained a lifetime's worth of experience in human frailty and strength. Written with real joy, emotion and amusement, the twenty chapters each deal with an individual moment - both break-throughs and disasters - or an individual character that has contributed to this extraordinary adventure. Whether he is explaining the importance of biscuits or the role of the elderly in a community undertaking, remembering the scrappy kid who never quite delivered or the mother who had most to prove this is an incredibly moving journey. It is his adventure...and ours.

316/365+1 : Memories

Here are my poppies. I love the pin badge and will be buying these again in future years.


Hubby served his country for 23 years in the RAF and I spent 18 years as a "military wife (although nothing like the choir of the same name although we spent 6 very happy years at RAF Chivenor where the choir is based.) He worked on Search and Rescue for most of those years and  by the nature of the job this meant we were always posted close to the sea - how lucky were we. Luckily there was never any need for large yellow helicopters to be deployed anywhere near any conflicts although he did manage several 4 month tours of the Falklands. I am very proud to say that my husband served his country.

There have been plenty of photos and pictures posted on Facebook over the past few days in honour of Remembrance Sunday and these 2 are my favourites.

315/365+1 : Warm

My Creme Brulee latte from Costa was warm and delish this afternoon while Christmas shopping in Inverness - now we have one opening in Elgin a couple of weeks I can't see me going into Starbucks again.

10 Things : November

I am a bit of a late starter to Pinterest but I am making up for lost time I think. I have only been active on the site for a few weeks but so far I have 22 boards and 523 pins. I have 235 followers and am following 185 folk. Not sure how that happened so quickly.

So here are 10 of my boards:

Snow - cos I just love love love the stuff.

For The Home.

Words and Phrases.

Owls (you can never have too many owls!)

For The Garden (I have plans for my little patch for next year.)

MiTo (sad I know but I love my little car so much.)

Photography.

Cards (so much inspiration.)

Books and Reading.

Christmas.

Pop over and see Shimelle and see what everyone else has been blogging about on the 10th.

314/365+1 : Ponder

Lat year we visited The Burrell Collection which is situated in Pollock Country Park (free addmission which is even better!) The collection comprises of over 8000 items collected by Sir William Burrell and gifted to the city - it is quite an amazing place. And one of the exhibits is The Thinker by Rodin - which I thought was quite apt for todays prompt.

Skywatch Friday

The view from my house on a crisp Autumnal morning.

See more skies from around the world here.